UK Pet Forums Forum banner

The nail thread

8K views 128 replies 25 participants last post by  Arny 
#1 ·
I've done this way too many times, but it's just that important and with the new members and new format I figured it's about time for another nail thread.

One of the best things we can do for our dog's overall health and comfort long-term is get them comfortable having their paws handled and nails trimmed and keep them trimmed throughout the dog's life.
At this point I have taught more dogs than I can count - who weren't taught as puppies, to be comfortable with paw handling and nail trims. Even if your young dog wears their nails down naturally, at some point that young dog is going to be an old dog who's less active and who's going to need attention to his/her feet.
Old dogs in particular really benefit from good nail care.

Susan Garrett explains it well:

So yes, you should learn to cut/trim/grind your dog's nails and you should keep them short enough that they don't touch the floor when the dog is standing normally.

This is the help, questions and suggestions thread :)

This is Penny
When I first caught her:
Cloud Plant Sky Vertebrate Dog breed


And sitting in my lap. Notice even on my squishy thighs, her nails aren't even touching. (Ignore the bug bites on my leg.)
Joint Skin Shoulder Scar Jaw


How do you do keeping your dogs nails trimmed?
 
See less See more
2
#88 ·
Awesome!
Okay so the next step is the human training. This is the hardest part. Stop before he gets fed up.
If 3 nails is his limit, force yourself to stop at two. And if you're anything like me, this is the hardest, hardest part. Because my mind says "oh he's being so good, let me do all the nails!" and that's the worst thing you can do. You have to force yourself to stop when they're being good, before they get fed up :)
 
#89 ·
Awesome!
Okay so the next step is the human training. This is the hardest part. Stop before he gets fed up.
If 3 nails is his limit, force yourself to stop at two. And if you're anything like me, this is the hardest, hardest part. Because my mind says "oh he's being so good, let me do all the nails!" and that's the worst thing you can do. You have to force yourself to stop when they're being good, before they get fed up :)
Haha, this is definitely the hardest part! You just want to get them all done so it's done 😅🙈
 
#90 ·
My approach has always been that if my dog doesnt like something, but I'm doing it for their health and benefit then tough luck, it's happening. My previous 3 didnt like their nails being done, but they'd let me do them because it was going ahead regardless and they knew that.

Ritter doesnt like being groomed but with the help of treats, he will allow me to do it. Nails however is a step too far. I keep playing with his feet and nails getting him used to me touching them but he does pull away when he realises what I'm doing.

He was bleeding slightly from a paw the other day but I couldn't even inspect his feet long enough to determine which one it was, let alone get a Dremel on those talons!
 
#92 ·
How long do you need to wait for the quick to recede? Atlas's nails are far too long and yesterday I gave up the softly softly approach and just cut all his nails in one go, much less stressful for us both. But but I know I need to wait for the quick to recede before I do it again. Does it recede no matter how much or little you take off or do you have to be close? He has mostly black nails so I can't see the quick to judge.
 
#93 ·
It depends on the dog, but there are ways that you can cut the nail to make the quick more likely to recede.
I use a nail grinder and when I'm trying to get the quick back, I grind the nails almost like you would sharpen a pencil with the quick being like the lead of the pencil. Basically you're trying to get as much of the quick exposed as possible.
This link has a video with a good discussion about how to cut so that the quick is more exposed:

If you do the alternate cut with a nail grinder, you can knock a little bit off every other day or every third day. The nice thing about a grinder is that even if you do hit the quick, it's only a tiny pinprick of blood that stops on its own, and most dogs don't even feel it.
 
#95 ·
Oh that sucks :(
I wouldn't worry though, I've quicked every single dog up until Penny, but I've never used clippers on Penny, just the sanding tool.
Every dog I've quicked forgave me :)
I'd look in to the rotary tools though, dogs like 'em better and no blood baths :)
 
#96 ·
Oh that sucks :(
I wouldn't worry though, I've quicked every single dog up until Penny, but I've never used clippers on Penny, just the sanding tool.
Every dog I've quicked forgave me :)
I'd look in to the rotary tools though, dogs like 'em better and no blood baths :)
To be fair, I think he's forgiven me already 😅 we have a dremmel, but I was trying to get the bulk of the nails off so I can then keep them short with the dremmel.
 
#97 ·
I have never trimmed Sams nails or Duchesses when she was alive, but they were never over long. I walk them on hard surfaces often enough that naturally they just wear down by themselves. Here is proof of that with this image taken about 15 mins ago, the nails are flat and nowhere near the floor and this was him just stood up.

Wood Dog Fawn Flooring Beige
 
#98 ·
Just wondering @cbcdesign is that a rear foot?
Most dogs keep their rear feet down with normal wear and tear, but front feet can get long.

I've never had a dog who is on hard surfaces enough to wear their nails down. Mine run in the woods and on dirt trails and are rarely on any kind of concrete or asphalt.

Plus I think it's important for the dog to be used to nail trimming and handling because at some point they may need it. Either they slow down and don't knock the nails back enough with regular exercise or they have an injury that requires them being off that leg...
 
#99 ·
Just wondering @cbcdesign is that a rear foot?
Most dogs keep their rear feet down with normal wear and tear, but front feet can get long.

I've never had a dog who is on hard surfaces enough to wear their nails down. Mine run in the woods and on dirt trails and are rarely on any kind of concrete or asphalt.

Plus I think it's important for the dog to be used to nail trimming and handling because at some point they may need it. Either they slow down and don't knock the nails back enough with regular exercise or they have an injury that requires them being off that leg...
No, the picture is his left front paw.

I am sure that's true for many dogs, nowhere near enough time on hard surfaces for natural wear so sure, essential that they are trimmed. I saw a small dog recently in the local pet store whose nails were horrendous! twisted and ugly to look at. They should never be allowed to get like that.

I agree that they need to be used to being touched for injury for example too. Sam gets plenty of hands on, I trim the hair between his pads for example because it gets too long otherwise and would clogs up with mud or snow (when we get it) if allowed to keep growing. But he hates having his nails touched and I don't like stressing him up by doing something that is unnecessary in his case. Black claws are a pain to be honest!
 
#101 ·
I forgot to charge the nail grinder and only had enough juice for one side.
Can you tell which side?
This is just a week's worth of growth. Penny keeps her two weight bearing nails down more than the side nails, but even in just a week she managed a lot of growth. I don't know how people can go once a month or longer!


Hand Gesture Wood Finger Fawn
 
#103 ·
I thought I'd updated this concerning Ritter's nails.

He still wont let me near them with the Dremel but he's perfectly happy for me to use a manual pet nail file on them. It's much, much slower progress and although they're still longer then I'd like, they're now blunt and dont hurt when he jumps up.

I try to do a bit daily and make sure I treat him whilst I'm doing them.
 
#105 ·
Briea's nails are very long! Her breeder says she ground them but they don't appear to have been done for a while . and of course, they're black! I'll approach her with the grinder when we've built up a bit more trust.
 
#106 ·
It's crazy to me how fast Penny's nails grow. Particularly her side nails. So she must be wearing down her weight bearing nails some, but they get long fast too.

This was 2 weeks of growth - life got busy and we skipped a couple trims. You can see how long those side nails got:
Dog Vertebrate Carnivore Ear Mammal


Gesture Comfort Dog breed Fawn Liver


Then after her trim. And yes, apparently I can't get many pictures of Penny's feet without her chomping on me in the process, weirdo!

Dog Plant Houseplant Dog breed Picture frame


Hand Vertebrate Dog Mammal Gesture


Vertebrate Carnivore Wood Mammal Small to medium-sized cats
 
#108 ·
I did a thing, I used actual nail clippers! I've never had any confidence with them and attempts to use them with previous dogs have ended up with a bad experience so I've not dared use any for years.
Ritter still doesn't like the Dremel and using a manual nail file barely seems to make a difference. His nails were getting disgustingly long so I bit the bullet. I did them whilst he was outside sunbathing and he didn't even bat an eyelid. I just took a little bit off and then filed the sharp edges so although they're still too long, I'm not disgusted by them any more!
I took a bit more off today so little and often is the way forward.
 
#109 ·
Thought I would add this to the nail thread instead of starting a new one because it's all about foot health.

Penny spends a lot of time running/trotting on different surfaces, with XC season starting up she will put in even more miles. Part of keeping her sound is checking her feet every night (when she's finally tired and chill).

First I go down the whole toe feeling the bones, checking for anything that feels different and checking for heat. Then I kind of roll each pad around, checking for stiffness, swelling or flinching, then I check between each toe - here mainly feeling for ticks. Takes less than a minute per foot and can really help avoid problems before they get expensive :)

 
#110 ·
Thought I would add this to the nail thread instead of starting a new one because it's all about foot health.

Penny spends a lot of time running/trotting on different surfaces, with XC season starting up she will put in even more miles. Part of keeping her sound is checking her feet every night (when she's finally tired and chill).

First I go down the whole toe feeling the bones, checking for anything that feels different and checking for heat. Then I kind of roll each pad around, checking for stiffness, swelling or flinching, then I check between each toe - here mainly feeling for ticks. Takes less than a minute per foot and can really help avoid problems before they get expensive :)

What sweet little paws!:love:
 
  • Like
Reactions: O2.0
#111 ·
I thought about this thread earlier as Tilly’s going to a physio-esque thing.
The lady’s a vet nurse and she asked if I clipped Tilly’s nail to which I said yes they’re in desperate need of doing at which point she pulled a bit of a face.
Apparently the reason she asked is because she thought they were short!
This is them before I did them today.
Leg Fawn Wood Flooring Human leg
 
#114 ·
Definitely depends on the dog too! Penny has a cat foot with fat pads, so her nails can carry more length and still be well clear of the ground. Other dogs need shorter or longer, but you definitely get to know your dog and how they do best. Bates definitely benefited from shorter nails the older he got.
 
#116 ·
They don’t look too much different on the carpet to be honest but I did take a fair amount of new growth off.
Just adding a bit more clearance as depending on how she walks the middle ones in particular were scrapping the ground and throwing her off.
I actually use a pet nail grinder as although Tilly is fine with clippers I’m much more wary of getting too close. With the grinder is much more accurate so I’m not scared of hitting the quick and even then if you do hit it they don’t seem to notice, not like you squeezing it between clippers.
Leg Human body Wood Fawn Plant
 
#121 ·
With small dogs, the other benefit of well-maintained nails is that the dog can sit (or stand) on your lap in shorts weather and not shred your thighs :)

View attachment 587871
Or like mine they can be unceremoniously dumped on any convenient park bench or wall whilst you cut their nails 😆

Dog Dog breed Carnivore Working animal Watch
 
#122 ·
I'm bringing this thread to the fore again as I have a question.

I try little and often to trim Ritters nails but they're still too long as I do them with a file.

However, I've noticed that a couple of his nails have the outer shell completely grown round to cover the quick underneath, so the whole nail is encased.

Is this a problematic thing? I've also noticed him licking one particular toe/nail and I can't find anything wrong with it except it's one that is totally encased. Would this cause him more discomfort?
 
#123 ·
I'm bringing this thread to the fore again as I have a question.

I try little and often to trim Ritters nails but they're still too long as I do them with a file.

However, I've noticed that a couple of his nails have the outer shell completely grown round to cover the quick underneath, so the whole nail is encased.

Is this a problematic thing? I've also noticed him licking one particular toe/nail and I can't find anything wrong with it except it's one that is totally encased. Would this cause him more discomfort?
In my non-expert view, I think some dogs just grow their nails that way, and sure, if the nails are long enough, they can get completely encased. The shell outer part grows faster than the meaty and quick if I remember right. I don't think the encased part is more painful, just having a longer nail is probably the part that's bothering him.

It's really hard if you don't have someone to help you. Do you have any groomers who you could work with to get him happier with nail trims? He might need them clipped then filed down. I do love the quieter rotary tools available now might be worth a shot?
 
#124 ·
In my non-expert view, I think some dogs just grow their nails that way, and sure, if the nails are long enough, they can get completely encased. The shell outer part grows faster than the meaty and quick if I remember right. I don't think the encased part is more painful, just having a longer nail is probably the part that's bothering him.

It's really hard if you don't have someone to help you. Do you have any groomers who you could work with to get him happier with nail trims? He might need them clipped then filed down. I do love the quieter rotary tools available now might be worth a shot?
I'm a little bit more confident with the clippers now I know to trim them looking at the underside of the nail. I don't know why it's taken me 17 years to realise that! So I'm using the clippers to take little bits off, then using the file to take the sharp edges off.

I can get a much more successful session if somebody feeds him squeezy cheese but my Mum refuses to help as she doesnt like getting it on her hands. It's better doing it at home than a groomers because he struggles in new environments and is very unruly.

Of course, with the nails that are fully encased I can't even see the quick so I've been trying to file the underside right down but without food to distract him it's not easy.
I've tried spreading the cheese on a surface for him to concentrate on but that doesn't work either.

There is a groomers at the top of the road about 5 mins walk away so I might get in touch with them if I don't make headway at home.
 
Top